May 14: Spain PM calls Israel a ‘genocidal state,’ sparking summoning of Madrid’s envoy

Trump envoys Witkoff and Kellogg to go to Turkey for Russia-Ukraine talks, sources say

US President Donald Trump’s senior envoys Steve Witkoff and Keith Kellogg will travel to Istanbul for potential talks on Thursday on how to end the war in Ukraine, three sources familiar with the plans say.

Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, unleashing a war that has killed hundreds of thousands of soldiers on both sides.

The envoys will attempt to revive Trump’s stalled push to broker peace in the conflict, which he has repeatedly promised to end.

US officials are hoping Russia will agree to a comprehensive 30-day land, air, sea and critical infrastructure ceasefire, a senior US official says, adding that Kyiv has already agreed to abide by such a deal.

Ben & Jerry’s cofounder confronts RFK Jr in Gaza protest at Capitol

Ben Cohen, co-founder of Ben and Jerry's, is detained by U.S. Capitol Police for disrupting proceedings during a hearing with U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions on Capitol Hill on May 14, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Samuel Corum/Getty Images/AFP)

Ben Cohen, cofounder of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream and longtime progressive activist, was removed from a Senate hearing Wednesday after confronting US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and lawmakers over Washington’s support for Israel’s military campaign in Gaza.

Kennedy had been reading prepared remarks about his department’s 2026 budget when activists interrupted the session, chanting “RFK kills people with AIDS.”

Kennedy jumped from his seat in reaction to the outburst.

Cohen then shouted: “Congress pays for bombs to kill children in Gaza,” accusing lawmakers of funding arms by cutting Medicaid, the government health insurance program for low-income families that Republicans are seeking to slash.

Video posted by anti-war group Codepink showed the 74-year-old in handcuffs as Capitol Police escorted him from the chamber.

“They need to let food into Gaza, they need to let food to starving kids!” Cohen yelled as he was taken away.

A vocal critic of Israeli policy, Cohen last year co-signed an open letter titled A Statement From Jewish Americans Opposing AIPAC, denouncing the pro-Israel lobby’s influence in US politics.

Ben from Ben & Jerry’s confronts RFK Jr. and Congress:
“YOU’RE KILLING POOR KIDS IN GAZA
AND PAYING FOR IT BY CUTTING MEDICAID
FOR KIDS HERE.”
While Congress writes checks for bombs, children are starving. pic.twitter.com/nBxzwGnVf7

— Medea Benjamin (@medeabenjamin) May 14, 2025

Iranian official says Tehran will agree to deal that caps uranium enrichment

Iran is willing to agree to a deal with the US in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions, an Iranian official tells NBC News in an interview published on Wednesday.

Ali Shamkhani, an adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, says Tehran would commit to never making nuclear weapons, getting rid of its stockpiles of highly-enriched uranium, agree to only enrich uranium to the lower levels needed for civilian use, and allow international inspectors to supervise the process, NBC reported.

US officials have offered varying statements regarding whether they’ll accept a deal that allows Iran to maintain a limited enrichment program, though, more recently have asserted that they won’t.

Putin to skip Ukraine talks, Russian team includes seasoned negotiators

Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced the composition of a delegation of experienced negotiators to conduct direct talks with Ukraine to resolve the ongoing war, though, the talks will not include the Kremlin leader himself.

Speculation on whether Putin would attend the direct talks has hung over the meeting since he had proposed it himself last week. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy had said he would attend the talks if Putin were present.

An order issued by Putin on the Kremlin website said the delegation included two officials who took part in the last set of talks held between the two sides in the first weeks following Russia’s 2022 invasion of its smaller neighbor.

Those included presidential adviser Vladimir Medinsky and Deputy Defence Minister Alexander Fomin.

Also named as part of the delegation was Igor Kostyukov, director of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the GRU, Russia’s Foreign Military Intelligence Agency. Kostyukov was identified in the Kremlin announcement as Chief of the Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces.

Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin was also named as part of the delegation.

Negotiators held several rounds of talks in 2022 first in Belarus and then in Turkey, but the negotiations eventually broke down.

Gaza Humanitarian Foundation says it will begin aid distribution by end of May

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation announces that it would launch operations in the Gaza Strip before the end of the month, adding that Israel has agreed to expand the number of “Secure Distribution Sites” in order to serve the enclave’s entire population, according to a statement.

In a letter to the Israeli government, the foundation’s executive director, Jake Wood, requested that Israel facilitate the flow of enough aid using existing modalities to Gaza until it is fully operational.

PM condemns ‘horrific’ West Bank shooting of Israeli couple en route to hospital delivery room

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemns the “horrific” shooting by a Palestinian terrorist on several Israeli vehicles in the West Bank this evening, which the IDF said wounded a man and his pregnant wife.

“I am deeply shocked by the horrific attack in Samaria against a woman in advanced pregnancy and her husband, as they were on their way to the delivery room,” writes Netanyahu in a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office, referring to the northern West Bank where the shooting took place.

“I trust that our security forces will, in this case as in others, quickly reach the murderers and hold them and all who aided them to account,” concludes the statement.

Responding to ‘bully’ Trump, Iran president says ‘martyrdom far sweeter than dying in bed’

President Masoud Pezeshkian speaks during a rally commemorating anniversary of 1979 Islamic Revolution in Tehran, Iran, February 10, 2025. (Iranian Presidency Office via AP)

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian says Iran will not “bow to any bully” in response to US President Donald Trump’s criticism of Tehran during his Gulf tour.

“He (Trump) thinks he can come here, chant slogans and scare us. For us, martyrdom is far sweeter than dying in bed. You came to frighten us? We will not bow to any bully,” he says in comments broadcast live on state TV.

PM: Release of hostages ‘at the forefront of my mind together with combined objectives of military pressure’

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Kirya military headquarters in Tel Aviv, in a video statement he released on May 14, 2025. (X screenshot)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says in a video statement that he is “making all the efforts” to return the hostages alongside the aim of applying military pressure on Hamas.

While exiting the military’s Kirya headquarters in Tel Aviv this evening, Netanyahu says, “I’m leaving from here to meet with the US ambassador. We are making all the efforts, including throughout today, to bring the release of our hostages and to achieve the goals of our war.”

“We are not giving up on anyone,” he adds.

Asked to respond to reports that the hostage issue is not a primary concern of the premier or his government, Netanyahu replies that, “I stopped my trial today” in order to “take two hours this afternoon to speak with [US special envoy to the Mideast Steve] Witkoff in Doha — because I asked to send a delegation to Doha in order to try and progress the release of our hostages.”

“So they are at the forefront of my mind, they are there, together with the combined objectives of military pressure,” he continues.

“And also on all of these things I spoke continuously about today at the Kirya. That’s what we’re doing, hours upon hours, and now I am going, like I said, to continue the job, in Jerusalem,” says the premier.

IDF blocks entrance to Palestinian town of Bruqin amid manhunt for terrorist

According to an initial IDF probe of the attack near Bruchin, several Israeli vehicles came under fire. In one car, a man and his pregnant wife were seriously wounded.

The IDF has dispatched troops and an Israeli Air Force drone for the manhunt for the terrorist who carried out the shooting. Troops have also blocked the entrance to the adjacent Palestinian town of Bruqin.

Hospital says man was lightly hurt in shooting attack after his condition was first reported as serious

Beilinson Hospital in Petah Tikva says the condition of a man wounded in a shooting attack on a West Bank highway has been updated to lightly hurt after he was initially listed as seriously wounded.

There are no immediate updates from the hospital on the pregnant woman who was critically hurt in the terror shooting.

First responders say woman critically hurt in shooting attack is in late stages of pregnancy

The woman wounded in the shooting attack near the West Bank settlement of Bruchin is in the late stages of pregnancy, according to first responders.

She was taken to a hospital in critical condition, along with a man in serious condition.

Trump says he doesn’t want ‘violent’ resolution to Iranian nuclear program but ‘it’s their decision’

While attending a state dinner in Qatar, US President Donald Trump repeats his desire for a peaceful resolution to Iran’s nuclear program, and suggests the ball is in Tehran’s court.

“The non-friendly is a violent course and I don’t want that.” He adds that “it’s their decision.”

He urges Qatar to help reach an agreement.

“It’s a perilous situation, and we want to do the right thing,” he says. “We want to do something that’s going to save maybe millions of lives. Because things like that get started and they get out of control.”

Witkoff said to present new plan to free all the hostages, end the war, remove Hamas from power

White House special envoy Steve Witkoff speaks with journalists after a signing ceremony between President Donald Trump and Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani at the Amiri Diwan in Doha, Qatar, May 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

US President Donald Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, has laid out a new plan during hostage negotiations in Doha for a deal to release all or almost all of the hostages in Gaza, end the war, and remove Hamas from power in the Gaza Strip, according to a Channel 12 news report.

While mediators have expressed support for the plan, and Hamas has “sent positive signals,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is insisting on a limited deal that does not require Israel to end its military campaign in Gaza, says the report.

It notes that Witkoff and Netanyahu spoke by phone earlier today.

“The Americans have an attitude of ‘take it or leave it,’ or we’re gone. They are determined that whoever doesn’t go with them will lose a lot,” a senior Israeli official aware of the discussions told Channel 12.

In recordings aired this evening by the network, Witkoff is heard telling the hostages’ families yesterday in Tel Aviv that, “Statistically, many more hostages than not have come out through diplomatic means, that’s what’s really worked. The Israeli military has had success, they have, but more often than not, dialogue and diplomacy have really worked here.”

Meanwhile, unnamed ministers in the Israeli security cabinet told Channel 12 today that “this cabinet approved [Israel’s planned expanded Gaza ground invasion] in the case that Hamas does not agree to release additional hostages in the [original] Witkoff framework. The prime minister will be judged by us based on how firmly he stands up to the pressure from Trump.”

The original Witkoff framework would see a temporary ceasefire of some 40 days, in exchange for about half of the remaining living hostages.

IDF opens manhunt for Palestinian terrorist who fired on Israeli motorists in West Bank

The IDF says it has launched a manhunt for a Palestinian terrorist who opened fire on Israeli motorists in the West Bank this evening, near the settlement of Bruchin.

A woman in her 30s is being treated in critical condition at the scene, and a man in his 30s is being taken to a hospital in serious condition, Magen David Adom says.

Medics report both victims seriously wounded in suspected West Bank terror shooting

This handout photo shows the scene of a suspected terror shooting attack on Route 446 between the Bruchin and Pedu'el settlements on May 14, 2025. (Magen David Adom)

Both victims of the suspected terror attack near the West Bank settlement of Bruchin are listed in serious condition, Magen David Adom says.

The pair came under fire on Route 446 between Bruchin and Pedu’el.

The IDF says it is responding to the incident.

First responders say 2 wounded by gunfire near West Bank settlement; IDF investigating

The IDF says it has received reports of gunfire near the West Bank settlement of Bruchin.

Further details are under investigation, it adds.

First responders say two people, a man and a woman, were injured by the gunfire.

Jordan evacuates 4 child cancer patients from Gaza, as it slowly works to meet commitment to Trump

A Palestinian child from Gaza being evacuated to Jordan by the Jordanian Armed Forces on May 14, 2025. (Jordanian Armed Forces)

Jordan carried out a medical evacuation of four child cancer patients and 12 of their family members from Gaza to the Hashemite kingdom earlier today, a Jordanian official tells The Times of Israel.

This follows King Abdullah’s announcement during a February meeting with US President Donald Trump that Jordan would take in 2,000 child cancer patients from Gaza, as Washington sought to push countries in the region to facilitate the emigration of Palestinians from the war-torn Strip.

The total number of cancer patients taken in by Jordan now stands at 33, after 29 were medically evacuated in March along with 44 family members.

The slow pace and small number of evacuations have reportedly been a point of tension for US Health Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. and Democratic House Representative Nancy Pelosi, who have both raised their frustration with Jordanian counterparts.

Politico reported that Jordanian officials in response noted that Israel was refusing to commit to allowing those who leave to return upon completion of their treatment, leaving family members unable to reunite with their loved ones.

The Israeli stance has significantly hampered efforts to find countries to take Gazans, particularly given increasing comments from government officials in Jerusalem about plans to permanently occupy the Strip and build settlements in places where Palestinians once lived.

The Jordanian official tells The Times of Israel that Amman is still committed to meeting Abdullah’s pledge to Trump, despite the challenges.

“Jordan wanted to evacuate all the children from Gaza by air, but Israeli authorities didn’t agree,” the Jordanian official says, adding that the evacuations took place by land, with patients being driven into Israel and then through the West Bank before reaching Jordan.

The transport through Israel ostensibly required the cooperation of Israeli authorities, but a separate Jordanian statement only mentions cooperation with the World Health Organization.

Israel summons Spanish envoy for reprimand after Spain’s PM called Israel a ‘genocidal state’

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez delivers a speech at Las Cortes Congress of Deputies in Madrid on May 7, 2025. (Thomas Coex/AFP)

After Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called Israel a “genocidal state” while speaking in the Spanish parliament, saying that Madrid “does not do business” with such a country, the Foreign Ministry has summoned the Spanish ambassador to Israel for a dressing down.

“Following the severe remarks made by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, the Spanish Ambassador to Israel has been summoned for a reprimand meeting at the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem tomorrow,” writes the Foreign Ministry in a statement.

Pedro Sánchez: "Nosotros no comerciamos con un estado genocida". pic.twitter.com/XJz3qoCuRM

— Isaac (@isaacrrr7) May 14, 2025

Las Vegas man jailed for making antisemitic threats against US Senator Jacky Rosen and her family

FILE - US Senator Jacky Rosen, a Democrat from Nevada, speaks at the Capitol in Washington, January 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, file)

LAS VEGAS — A Las Vegas man who made antisemitic threats against Nevada US Senator Jacky Rosen and her family has been sentenced to just under four years in federal prison.

Rosen, a Democrat, is Jewish and has maintained a vocal pro-Israel stance. Rosen’s office previously confirmed that she and her family were targeted.

John Anthony Miller, 44, is sentenced to 46 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release. He pleaded guilty in December to one count of threatening a federal official and other charges. Prosecutors say Miller also made threats against the family of another unnamed US senator.

In October 2023, Miller made several threatening calls and left a series of threatening voicemails containing antisemitic slurs to Rosen. In some of them, he referenced the Israel-Hamas war and the Holocaust, according to prosecutors.

Miller also went to a federal courthouse in Las Vegas, looking for Rosen, but he was turned away after refusing to provide identification, prosecutors said. Outside the courthouse, he shouted threats against Israelis. He was arrested a week later and has been in custody ever since.

Jess Marchese, Miller’s lawyer, says Miller struggles with a drug addiction and was high on methamphetamine at the time of the crimes.

“I felt the sentence was a little harsh for a nonviolent offender with a minimal criminal record, but we respect the court’s ruling and look forward to John moving forward and dealing with his addiction,” Marchese says in a text to The Associated Press.

AP also emails Rosen’s office. At the time of Miller’s arrest, a spokesperson for Rosen’s office said in a statement that threats against public officials should be taken seriously.

Qatari foreign ministry spokesperson: Edan Alexander’s release gave push to Gaza ceasefire negotiations

Adviser to Qatar's prime minister, Dr. Majed al-Ansari, speaks to the Kan public broadcaster, April 28, 2024. (Kan screenshot: used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari says that the release of the hostage soldier from Hamas captivity in Gaza, Edan Alexander, has brought a new push to the negotiation efforts regarding the war in Gaza.

In an interview with the Qatari Al-Araby channel, Al-Ansari adds that all the meetings held in Qatar today took place within the framework of this momentum and the new proposal, as he put it, in the negotiations between Israel and Hamas.

He also says that Qatar is working with mediators Egypt and the United States to bridge the gap between the sides.

US threatens sanctions on any nation or entity that assists Yemen’s Houthis

The United States says it will pursue sanctions against any country, group or person that provides fuel, war material or other resources to Yemen’s Houthi rebels.

Last week, Trump announced that the US would halt its strikes on the Houthis, an Iran-backed rebel group that agreed to stop its attacks on American vessels in the Red Sea.

Acting US Ambassador Dorothy Shea tells a UN Security Council meeting that Iran has enabled Houthi attacks “with military, logistical and intelligence support.”

“This council must not tolerate Iranian defiance of its resolutions and should impose consequences on sanctions violators using the tools at its disposal,” she says.

Over 65 ex-hostages urge Israel to seize ‘historic momentum’ for deal that frees all captives

Relatives and supporters of Israelis held hostage in Gaza by Palestinian terrorists lift placards and Israeli flags as they call on the US to intervene for their release, in front of the US embassy branch office in Tel Aviv, on May 13, 2025. (Jack Guez/AFP)

A group of over 65 freed hostages signs onto a letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other government ministers urging Israel to resume negotiations for a deal to free all the hostages, citing the “historic momentum” created by the release of Edan Alexander.

“We believe the Israeli government now faces a genuine opportunity to return to the negotiating table. We urge all those involved in this process: Please do not walk away until a comprehensive deal is signed,” the ex-captives write. “The majority of Israeli society wants the hostages home — even at the cost of halting military operations. They believe in the sanctity of human life and the paramount importance of bringing the fallen back for proper burial in Israel.”

“Having endured Hamas’s tunnels ourselves, we call upon US President Donald Trump, the prime minister, government ministers and all those engaged in these negotiations: Do not let this historic momentum stop,” they add.

They also call to “free all our brothers and sisters from their nightmare, regardless of which citizenship they hold.”

“Only the immediate return of ALL hostages through a negotiated deal will create the foundation for hope, unity, and the renewal of our nation,” the former hostages add.

Syrian finance chief pitches country as ‘a land of opportunities’ after US lifts sanctions

DAMASCUS, Syria — Syrian Finance Minister Yisr Barnieh makes a call to global investors to come do business with Syria after US President Donald Trump’s surprise announcement that he would lift all of Washington’s sanctions on the country.

“Syria today is a land of opportunities, with immense potential across every sector– from agriculture to oil, tourism, infrastructure and transportation,” Barnieh says in an interview with Reuters at the finance ministry in Damascus.

“We envision a central role for the private sector in the new Syrian economy. The finance ministry’s role is not to spend indiscriminately or act as a regulatory enforcer over businesses, but rather to enable and support growth.”

UNIFIL says perimeter of peacekeeping base in south Lebanon was hit by Israeli fire

The UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) says direct fire from the Israeli army hit the perimeter of one of its peacekeeping positions in south Lebanon.

In a statement, UNIFIL says the incident yesterday was the first of its kind since Israel and Iran-backed Lebanese terror group Hezbollah agreed to a ceasefire last November.

There is no immediate comment from the Israeli army.

Fresh Israeli strikes reported at Gaza hospital where IDF targeted Muhammad Sinwar

Palestinian media reports fresh Israeli strikes near the European Hospital in southern Gaza’s Khan Younis, where yesterday the IDF targeted Hamas leader Muhammad Sinwar.

The strikes appear to be an attempt by the IDF to prevent anyone from approaching a tunnel beneath the medical center where Sinwar was targeted.

متابعة| سلسلة غارات إسرائيلية عنيفة تستهدف محيط مستشفى غزة الأوروبي شرقي خانيونس، جنوب قطاع غزة. pic.twitter.com/l5CWvQe2p1

— المركز الفلسطيني للإعلام (@PalinfoAr) May 14, 2025

The IDF has not yet confirmed if Sinwar was killed in the strike, and is also looking into the possibility that other senior Hamas officials were potentially with him.

Germany’s Merz: Israel should calibrate military operations in Gaza to ensure hostages return alive

BERLIN — Germany wants to see the hostages held by Hamas in Gaza, including Germans, brought back alive and Israel should consider this in its military actions in the strip, Chancellor Friedrich Merz says.

Asked whether Germany would implement an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Merz says that in principle it should be possible for an Israeli premier to visit Germany.

How this could happen would be clarified when necessary, he says at the joint press conference with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in Berlin, adding that no bilateral visits by him or Netanyahu are currently planned.

Merz says future financial support for UNRWA, the United Nations’ agency for Palestinian refugees, is conditional on the organization being reformed.

Guterres, who is meeting Merz in Berlin, calls for a Gaza ceasefire and “unimpeded humanitarian access” to the Palestinian territory.

“In relation to Gaza, I reiterate my call for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages, unimpeded humanitarian access and an immediate cessation of hostilities allowing for an irreversible path towards a two-state solution,” Guterres says.

White House: Deals that Trump signed with Qatar will ‘generate at least $1.2 trillion’

US President Donald Trump gestures as he walks with Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani after a signing ceremony at the Amiri Diwan in Doha, Qatar, May 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Agreements signed by US President Donald Trump and Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani will “generate an economic exchange worth at least $1.2 trillion,” the White House says in a fact sheet summarizing some of the deals’ details.

The agreements include a $96 billion deal with Qatar Airways to buy up to 210 Boeing 787 Dreamliner and 777X airplanes with GE Aerospace engines, the fact sheet says. They also include a statement of intent that could lead to $38 billion in investments at Qatar’s Al Udeid Air Base and other air defense and maritime security capabilities, it says.

Zamir acknowledges ‘burden’ on reservists, as IDF readies for fresh Gaza offensive

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir meets with reservists at the Tze'elim training base in southern Israel, May 14, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir met with reservists this morning at the Tze’elim training base in southern Israel, where troops are preparing for a planned major offensive in the Gaza Strip.

“I am aware of the gravity of the task, the responsibility, and the burden that we place on you and your families. We do so with reverence. The only consideration before my eyes is the security of the country,” Zamir says in remarks published by the IDF.

Golani Brigade chief phones Edan Alexander: ‘You’re part of the family’ and ‘a true hero’

Golani Brigade commander Col. Adi Ganon speaks to his forces over the radio in southern Gaza's Rafah, May 12, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)

The IDF releases a recording of Golani commander Col. Adi Ganon phoning Edan Alexander, who served in the infantry brigade’s 51st Battalion, to fete his release from Hamas captivity in Gaza.

“I am so happy to see you, all the brigade is here, we waited for you all the time, up to now,” Ganon is heard telling Alexander. “It was very important for me to personally call you, to embrace you from afar.”

“We are really, really happy you are again with us. You are part of the family, even in the tough moments, even now. A true hero who returned to us,” Ganon adds, telling Alexander that “the strength you displayed throughout this time inspires us.”

Alexander, in turn, tells Ganon that he’s “doing fine.”

“I’m weak, but rehabilitating. With the help of God it’s just [a matter of] time,” he says.

IDF issues evacuation warning for Gaza City neighborhood: ‘Hamas exploiting civilian areas for terror’

The IDF issues an evacuation warning for Palestinians in several schools and a hospital in Gaza City’s Rimal neighborhood, saying that Hamas is exploiting the civilian sites for terror.

“Due to the Hamas terror organization exploiting civilian areas for terror activities, as shown in the attached image, the IDF will attack the area with great force,” warns the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesman, Col. Avichay Adraee.

“For your safety, you must evacuate the area,” he adds.

The school complexes and Shifa Hospital are used by displaced Gazans as shelters.

#عاجل ‼️ إلى سكان قطاع غزة الموجودين في البلوكات: 633, 706, 785, 786, 787 في منطقة حي الرمال الجنوبي
⭕️نظرًا لقيام حماس الارهابية باستغلال المناطق المدنية لأنشطة إرهابية مثلما يتضح في الصورة المرفقة سيهاجم جيش الدفاع في المنطقة بقوة شديدة.
⭕️من أجل سلامتكم عليكم اخلاء المنطقة.… pic.twitter.com/voQGOAtE27

— افيخاي ادرعي (@AvichayAdraee) May 14, 2025

Court again extends remand of northern mayor suspected of sexual assault

Screen capture from video of Harish Mayor Yitzhak Keshet, 2024. (YouTube)

The Haifa Magistrate’s Court extends the detention of Harish mayor Yitzhak Keshet, Ynet reports.

The detained mayor was arrested last month on suspicion of sexually assaulting multiple women, some of whom were his employees. This is the seventh time that judges have extended Keshet’s remand.

Keshet is also suspected of obstructing the investigation and breach of trust, amid suspicions that he used another city hall worker to silence the women who complained about him.

In March, Channel 12 news interviewed the municipal worker, who was later questioned by police, as well as five women who claimed they were assaulted by Keshet.

Keshet’s attorney at the time said in a statement to the outlet that his client completely denies that he committed any offense.

New Canadian FM accuses Israel of using ‘food as a political tool’ in Gaza

OTTAWA — New Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand accuses Israel of using a lack of food as a political tool in its Gaza operation and urges further work on a ceasefire with Hamas, the terror group that controls the Palestinian enclave.

Israel has sealed off the Gaza Strip since early March and resumed its military campaign against Hamas following the collapse of a ceasefire deal during which thousands of aid trucks entered the enclave.

“We cannot allow the continued use of food as a political tool.. Over 50,000 people have died as a result of the aggression caused against the Palestinians and the Gazan people in Palestine. Using food as a political tool is simply unacceptable,” Anand tells reporters ahead of a cabinet meeting.

“We need to continue to work towards a ceasefire. We need to ensure that we have a two-state solution, and Canada will continue to maintain that position.”

British neo-Nazis convicted of planning to attack synagogues, mosques as part of ‘race war’

LONDON — Three British right-wing extremists are convicted of planning to carry out a terrorist attack at mosques or synagogues as part of a “race war,” British police say.

Brogan Stewart and Marco Pitzettu, both 25, and Christopher Ringrose, 34, were preparing an act of terrorism when they were arrested in February 2024, prosecutors said at the start of their trial in March.

The trio were also each charged with two counts of collecting information which may be useful to someone preparing an act of terrorism, while Ringrose was charged with manufacturing a component for a 3D-printed FGC9 firearm.

They pleaded not guilty but jurors at Sheffield Crown Court today convict them of all charges. They will be sentenced on July 17.

“Stewart, Pitzettu, and Ringrose have today been rightfully convicted of multiple terrorism offenses,” Detective Chief Superintendent James Dunkerley, Head of Counter Terrorism Policing North East, says in a statement.

“They were a group that espoused vile racist views and advocated for violence, all to support their extreme right-wing mindset.

“Some of their defense in court was that it was all fantasy or just part of harmless chat, however all three took real-world steps to plan and prepare for carrying out an attack on innocent citizens.”

Prosecutor Jonathan Sandiford had told jurors that the three defendants expressed admiration for Adolf Hitler and perpetrators of notorious terrorist attacks, as well as hatred for non-white people, especially Muslims and immigrants.

“It was their belief that there must soon come a time when there would be a race war between the white and other races,” Sandiford says.

Italian PM decries ‘unjustifiable’ humanitarian situation in Gaza, says she’s pushing Israel to end war

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (right) meets with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in Tel Aviv on October 21, 2023. (Avi Ohayon/GPO)

ROME — Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni says the humanitarian situation in Gaza is “ever more dramatic and unjustifiable,” stressing she has repeatedly urged Israel to find a way to end the conflict.

“It is a request that I renew today in the face of a humanitarian situation in Gaza that I have no difficulty in defining as increasingly dramatic and unjustifiable,” Meloni tells parliament.

Qatar signs what Trump says is $200 billion deal to buy Boeing planes

Qatar signs a deal to purchase jets from US manufacturer Boeing for Qatar Airways during US President Donald Trump’s visit to the Gulf Arab country.

Trump says the deal is worth $200 billion and included 160 jets. Trump and Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani witnessed the signing ceremony in Doha.

The deal is announced during Trump’s second stop on a tour of Gulf states after he struck a string of deals with Saudi Arabia on Tuesday.

Trump says Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg told him at the signing ceremony that “it’s the largest order of jets in the history of Boeing, that’s good.”

Trump adds: “It’s over $200 billion but 160 in terms of the jets, that’s fantastic. So that’s a record, Kelly, and congratulations to Boeing. Get those planes out there, get them out there.”

‘Have a feeling it’s going to work out,’ Trump says on nuclear talks with Iran

Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani (R) and US President Donald Trump sit side by side at the Royal Palace in Doha on May 14, 2025. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP)

DOHA, Qatar — US President Donald Trump voices optimism that diplomatic efforts for a nuclear deal with Iran will succeed, after he held talks with Qatar’s emir.

“I have a feeling it’s going to work out,” Trump says in Doha, following the resumption last month of negotiations with Iran seeking to reach a deal.

Hamas-run Gaza rescue agency says 80 killed since dawn in Israeli strikes

Gaza’s Hamas-run civil defense agency says the number of people killed in Israeli strikes across the Palestinian territory since dawn has risen to 80, of whom 59 were in the north.

“The number of martyrs killed in the ongoing Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip since dawn today has risen to 80, including 59 in the northern Gaza Strip,” civil defense official Mohammed al-Mughayyir tells AFP.

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.

Al Jazeera says Witkoff met Qatari officials alongside families of hostages

The Qatari news channel Al Jazeera reports that the US special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, met a short while ago in Doha with senior Qatari officials in the presence of families of hostages being held in Gaza. According to the report, the meeting lasted two and a half hours.

In line with yesterday’s announcement in Israel, Al Jazeera also reports that Edan Alexander, who was released from Hamas captivity yesterday, did not attend the meeting.

Ahead of Lag B’Omer, chief rabbi says he’ll issue warning against bonfires if asked by firefighters

Rabbi Kalman Ber attends a vote for the new Chief Ashkenazi rabbi, at the Chief Rabbinate headquarters in Jerusalem, October 31, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi Kalman Ber does not plan to issue a warning against bonfires ahead of the Jewish holiday of Lag B’Omer, unless “the firefighters asked him to do it,” a spokesperson tells The Times of Israel.

A spokesperson for the Sephardi Chief Rabbi David Yosef tells The Times of Israel he does not plan to take a position on the issue.

Lighting bonfires is a tradition during Lag B’Omer, which this year falls on Thursday night and Friday. However, Israel has in recent weeks been battling wildfires, particularly during extreme weather conditions. A new heatwave is set to hit Israel on Friday and Saturday.

On May 1, a fire in the area between Jerusalem and Beit Shemesh burned 20,000 dunams (5,000 acres), forcing several communities to evacuate and closing the Jerusalem-Tel Aviv highway and other roads for hours.

On Tuesday, the Fire and Rescue Authority issued an appeal to local authorities asking to ban bonfires in open areas between May 9 and May 18.

Police officer who killed over a dozen Hamas terrorists on Oct. 7 dies by suicide

First Sgt. Igor Pibenev gives an interview to the police spokesperson's unit on January 5, 2024. (Israel Police)

First Sgt. Igor Pibenev, who killed over a dozen Hamas terrorists during the October 7, 2023, invasion of southern Israel, took his own life last night.

His funeral will be held this evening at 6 p.m. at the Ashkelon Cemetery. He leaves behind a wife and three daughters.

Upon hearing about the October 7 Hamas attack, Pibenev left the police station in Hebron and drove to his home in Yated, a moshav near the Gaza border. On the way there, he killed at least 13 Hamas terrorists.

Pibenev encountered the first two gunmen near Urim Junction. He stopped his car after hearing the sound of bullets, then identified and shot the pair dead. Minutes later, two others began to shoot at him, embroiling him in a quick gunfight.

“After I saw them fall and not move, I returned to my car and continued to travel,” he said in an interview to the police spokesperson’s office. He went on to kill nine others, several who were heading toward Nir Yitzhak.

After reuniting with his family in Yated, he went out again to join up with the moshav’s volunteer security team.

“We had trained for scenarios like this, but I never imagined we’d face such a large number of terrorists,” he said.

Pibenev’s death was announced on social media. Three months ago, his wife, Hani Liderman-Pibenev, posted about the “silent victims of October 7,” referring to those struggling with survivor’s guilt and PTSD following the massacre.

“If there are people around you who have been deteriorating since that Shabbat, turn the world upside down to make sure they get professional help and proper treatment. Don’t try to save them by yourselves,” she wrote.

Trump says Syria’s leader backs normalization with Israel ‘but they have a lot of work to do’

A handout picture provided by the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) shows US President Donald Trump (L), Syria's interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa (R), Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (C) posing for a picture in Riyadh on May 14, 2025 (SANA / AFP)

US President Donald Trump says that Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa backed normalization with Israel in the future, after the two leaders met as Washington lifted sanctions on Syria.

“I told him [Sharaa], I hope you’re going to join [the Abraham Accords] once you’re straightened out and he said yes. But they have a lot of work to do,” Trump tells reporters aboard Air Force One.

At Kibbutz Be’eri, German president vows to ‘not remain silent’ until all the hostages return

This handout photo shows President Isaac Herzog (left) and his German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier visiting Kibbutz Be'eri in southern Israel, which was devastated by the Hamas-led October 2023 terror onslaught, on May 14, 2025. (Kobi Gideon/GPO)

President Isaac Herzog and his German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier visit Kibbutz Be’eri, where they presented plans for a new art gallery and planted a tree together, marking their second joint visit to the community since it was brutally attacked by Hamas on October 7, 2023.

The German government has significantly contributed toward the reconstruction of the Be’eri Gallery, which was utterly destroyed by Hamas and is now being rebuilt, says Herzog’s office in a statement.

“I truly hope and believe that after the horrible period that we have gone through and are going through, we shall see also peace in this region with our neighbors,” says Herzog, adding that “let’s hope that we inaugurate the beautiful gallery and Be’eri thrives and flourishes, and the region thrives and flourishes in peace.”

Steinmeier says: “Here, a year ago, we were shocked by the atrocities committed by Hamas. We saw the destroyed art gallery… We promised to help to rebuild this place.”

“Yet we are further away from the future than we would wish,” he continues, saying, “The kibbutz is not yet inhabited, the wounds are deep… 585 days after the massacre, there are still hostages in the hands of Hamas, including German companions… Germany will not forget them, and I will not forget them. Our voice will not remain silent, as long as they have not returned.”

The presidents also met with leaders and residents of the kibbutz, some of whom are survivors of the October 7 attack, Herzog’s office adds.

Plans for reconstructing the gallery were presented at a special ceremony, before the presidents planted a tree “as a symbol of renewal and hope for the Be’eri community,” the statement says.

Last night, Herzog presented Steinmeier with the Presidential Award of Honor, after returning from Berlin where he held a reciprocal state visit earlier this week.

Merz urges quick steps to avert Gaza ‘famine,’ stresses German backing for Israel

Friedrich Merz delivers his first speech as German chancellor in the parliament in Berlin, Germany, May 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

BERLIN — Germany’s new Chancellor Friedrich Merz urges all sides to avert a “famine” in Gaza, which has been under an aid blockade by Israel since early March.

While reiterating that Germany stands by Israel’s side, Merz also says that “we expect efforts for more humanitarian provision for the population in Gaza whose suffering we see, especially among children, women and the elderly.”

“It is a humanitarian obligation on all parties… and I stress, on all parties — that famine in the region be averted as soon as possible,” Merz tells parliament.

Merz says he hopes that there will be “successful negotiations for a ceasefire and the release of hostages” still being held by Hamas, including those with German nationality.

Germany, which has long sought to atone for the Holocaust, has been a staunch supporter of Israel, with which it marked 60 years of diplomatic relations this week.

Katz hits out at Macron over Gaza aid criticism: ‘Shouldn’t lecture us on morality’

Defense Minister Israel Katz fires back at French President Emmanuel Macron, after the French leader called Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s handling of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip “shameful” and hinted that the EU should consider sanctions.

“We remember well what happened to Jews in France when they couldn’t defend themselves. President Macron should not lecture us on morality,” Katz says in a statement.

Macron, speaking yesterday in an interview with TF1 television, accused Netanyahu of blocking aid into the Strip and warned that Europe may reconsider its cooperation agreements with Israel. “My job is to do everything I can to make it stop,” Macron said.

Katz responds that “it is expected that someone who considers himself a friend of Israel would stand by Israel in its war against the murderous terrorist organization Hamas and the Iranian axis of evil.”

“The IDF operates with the highest level of morality under extremely difficult and complex circumstances — certainly more than anything France has done in its past wars,” he adds.

Netanyahu to hold security meeting at 4:30 p.m.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will convene a limited security meeting at 4:30 p.m. today with ministers and defense officials.

Trump says he hopes for safety, dignity for Gazans, but says Hamas, who ‘delight in raping, torturing and murdering,’ can’t hold power

While in Riyadh earlier today, US President Donald Trump tells the Gulf conference that he hopes for the “future of safety and dignity of the Palestinian people” in Gaza, but says that cannot happen under the Strip’s current leaders, Hamas, who he says “delight in raping, torturing and murdering innocent people.”

He says he “greatly appreciates” the role of the Gulf countries in trying to “bring this terrible conflict to an end, including securing the release of American hostage Edan Alexander.”

“We thought Edan was dead,” he says, adding that “ultimately, all hostages of all nationalities must be released as a steppingstone to peace.”

“We thought Edan was dead.”

US President Donald Trump says Hamas cannot pursue peace while delighting in terror, as he thanks Gulf leaders for helping secure the release of American hostage Edan Alexander.#US #Gaza #Palestine #SaudiArabia #GCC pic.twitter.com/rhqbRUmcYb

— Al Arabiya English (@AlArabiya_Eng) May 14, 2025

Trump meets Qatar’s emir, praises their long friendship

Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani (R) receives US President Donald Trump in the Qatari capital Doha on May 14, 2025 (Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP)

Shortly after arriving in Doha, US President Donald Trump meets with Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, and praises the long friendship between the two.

“We’ve been friends for a long time,” Trump says, additionally praising the marble in the room.

“We will bring peace not only here, but also in other regions,” Trump says, singling out the conflict between Russia and Ukraine as a war in which he hopes progress will be imminently made.

A pair of bright red Tesla Cybertrucks carrying the markings of Qatar’s Emiri Guard police force had accompanied Trump’s motorcade from the airport to the Emiri Diwan.

Qatar, a key US ally, is expected to announce hundreds of billions of dollars in investments in the US. While the precise details of the investments Qatar plans to announce are unclear, Qatar Airways is expected to disclose a deal to buy around 100 widebody jets from Boeing, a source familiar with the matter says.

Earlier this week, Trump angrily dismissed concerns over his plans to accept a jet from Qatar to be used as Air Force One.

Saudi FM: US, Saudi Arabia ‘agree to end Gaza war, release all hostages’

Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan al-Saud attends the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in Riyadh on May 14, 2025. (Fayez NURELDINE / AFP)

Speaking to journalists after the Gulf summit, Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud says that the US and Saudi Arabia “agree to end the war in Gaza and release all hostages.”

He says the US administration is willing to make “very courageous decisions” to push toward a ceasefire in Gaza, and “open up pathways to resolving the broader issues of Palestine,” including “moving toward, one hopes, a Palestinian state,” according to a New York Times report.

The US did not issue a similar statement in regards to any agreements reached with the Saudis about the war in Gaza.

Al-Saud also says, “We need to reach a ceasefire in Gaza as soon as possible,” adding that “without a ceasefire in Gaza, it would be difficult to supply aid” to the enclave.

He also adds that Saudi Arabia “fully supports the US-Iran nuclear talks,” adding that he “hopes for positive results.”

Additionally, he says that the Saudis and the Gulf states “will be the first supporters” of a Syrian “economic renaissance.”

“We want to see Syria build a sustainable economy and build self-sufficiency,” he says. “That all needs a push, and that push will come from its friends in the region and beyond.”

PM’s office: Macron spreading ‘blood libels’ against Israel through Gaza aid comments

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responds to French President Emmanuel Macron’s criticism of the premier’s Gaza aid policy yesterday, calling Macron’s remarks “blood libels” against the Jewish state, in a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office.

“Macron has once again chosen to side with a murderous Islamist terror organization and echo its false propaganda, while accusing Israel of blood libels,” writes the PMO.

“Israel is waging a multi-front battle for its existence following the horrific massacre carried out by Hamas against innocent civilians on October 7, including the murder and abduction of dozens of French citizens,” continues the statement. “Instead of standing with the democratic Western camp fighting Islamist terror organizations and calling for the release of the hostages, Macron is once again demanding that Israel surrender and reward terrorism.”

“Israel will not stop and will not surrender. Prime Minister Netanyahu is determined to achieve all of Israel’s war objectives: the release of all our hostages, the military and governmental defeat of Hamas, and ensuring that Gaza will never again pose a threat to Israel,” concludes the PMO.

French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday denounced Netanyahu’s policy regarding humanitarian aid to Gaza as “unacceptable” and “shameful,” saying that Europe should consider increasing sanctions.

Trump said to praise Syria’s al-Sharaa: ‘Young, attractive guy. Tough guy. Strong past’

A cropped handout picture provided by the Saudi Royal Palace shows US President Donald Trump (R) shaking hands with Syria's interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa (L) in Riyadh on May 14, 2025. (Bandar AL-JALOUD / Saudi Royal Palace / AFP)

US President Donald Trump praises Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa as a “young, attractive guy,” the New York Times reports.

Speaking to reporters on Air Force One, Trump says the new Syrian leader is “young, attractive guy. Tough guy. Strong past. Very strong past. Fighter.”

“He’s got a real shot at holding it together,” Trump says. “I spoke with President Erdogan, who is very friendly with him. He feels he’s got a shot of doing a good job. It’s a torn-up country.”

Trump’s comments came after he met with al-Sharaa, a face-to-face engagement with the onetime insurgent leader who spent years imprisoned by US forces after being captured in Iraq. Trump has also pledged to lift years-long sanctions on Syria.

Trump says Israel is not sidelined by his Gulf trip: ‘This is very good for Israel’

US President Donald Trump speaks to reporters aboard Air Force One en route from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to Doha, Qatar, May 14, 2025. (AP/Alex Brandon)

US President Donald Trump says that Israel is not sidelined by his trip to the Gulf and that good US relations with those countries is good for Israel.

“This is good for Israel,” Trump tells reporters aboard Air Force One.

“Having a relationship like I have with these countries… I think it’s very good for Israel,” he says

IDF says it killed Hezbollah commander in earlier south Lebanon drone strike

Smoke rises after a reported Israeli airstrike in southern Lebanon, May 14, 2025. (Screenshot / X)

The IDF confirms carrying out a drone strike in southern Lebanon’s Qaaqaait al-Jisr earlier today, killing a Hezbollah commander.

According to the IDF, the operative served as the head of Hezbollah’s forces in the Qabrikha area, a town in southern Lebanon.

Trump lands in Qatar for second leg of Middle East tour

Qatar Emiri Air Force F-15s provide an honorary escort for Air Force One, carrying President Donald Trump, as it arrives in Doha, Qatar, Wednesday, May 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

US President Donald Trump has landed in Doha, Qatar, AFP reports, for his second stop on a three-day tour of the Gulf.

Trump touches down at Hamad International Airport in Doha, with relations between the two governments in the spotlight after Qatar offered Trump a $400 million luxury aircraft to serve as a new Air Force One and then pass into his personal use when he leaves office.

Trump: ‘If it weren’t for us, probably none of the hostages would be living right now. We’ll get out the rest step by step’

US President Donald Trump speaks during the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, May 14, 2025. (Alex Brandon/AP)

US President Donald Trump says that he thinks none of the hostages held in Gaza would still be alive if it weren’t for the United States.

Asked whether Israel deserves credit for the release of Edan Alexander, Trump says, “Well, they’ve been fighting a long time, they’re warring, and I think they deserve a lot of credit.

“I think my people deserve a lot of credit. Maybe the most credit,” Trump tells reporters aboard Air Force One as he heads from Saudi Arabia to Doha.

“Look, [Alexander] wouldn’t be there. If it weren’t for us, he wouldn’t be living right now. Probably none of the hostages would be living right now,” he says. “We probably have 20 that are living, that we’ll be getting out step by step.”

Terror groups in the Gaza Strip are holding 58 hostages, including 57 of the 251 abducted by Hamas-led terrorists on October 7, 2023. They include the bodies of at least 35 confirmed dead by the IDF. Israel says it has grave concerns about three hostages.

Alexander was released from captivity in the Gaza Strip on Monday in what has been described as a goodwill gesture from the Palestinian terror group Hamas to Trump ahead of the US president’s visit to the region.

Yesterday his parents expressed gratitude to Trump, Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff, and hostage envoy Adam Boehler for their work in bringing their son home. They did not mention Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Netanyahu held series of discussions with Witkoff on hostage talks, says PMO

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu just held a series of lengthy discussions with US President Donald Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, and the Israeli hostage negotiating team which Witkoff has joined in Doha, the Prime Minister’s Office says.

The hostage negotiations with Hamas are ongoing, as Trump makes his way to Qatar for the second leg of his Middle East visit.

Belgian police raid homes over illegal circumcisions allegedly performed not by doctors

Police in Antwerp are investigating reports of circumcisions being performed illegally, not by a doctor, according to Belgium’s Flemish broadcasting station VRT NWS.

Police conducted raids on three locations in the Jewish Quarter and nearby Green Quarter Wednesday morning, looking for knives and other equipment be used in circumcisions, the report says. No one was arrested.

The searches were ordered by a judge following a complaint from within the Jewish community, reports say.

Police are concerned that Jewish circumcisions are being performed by men who have not received proper medical training. Prosecutors have been investigating illegal circumcisions in the country since last fall.

Ritual circumcision has not yet been outlawed in any European country, but there have been attempts in several countries. Many countries, including Belgium, only allow licensed surgeons to perform the religious ritual, which is often performed in a synagogue.

Last year, authorities in Ireland arrested a rabbi from London for allegedly performing circumcision without the necessary medical credentials, the first case in years of a rabbi in Europe arrested in connection with a brit milah.

Nakba ceremony takes place as planned in front of Tel Aviv University, no arrests or scuffles

Protesters sing a patriotic Palestinian song during a Nakba memorial ceremony outside Tel Aviv University, May 15, 2025. (Noam Lehmann/The Times of Israel)

Under heavy police presence, several dozen Arab and left-wing Israeli students hold a Nakba memorial ceremony at Tel Aviv University’s Entin Square, as right-wing counter-protesters attempt to disrupt the rally with loud music and taunts from behind a police barricade.

As opposed to some previous years, there were no arrests or scuffles between the two sides.

Nakba, or catastrophe, is the Arabic term used for the exodus and expulsion of some 700,000 Palestinians during Israel’s War of Independence in 1948.

The annual protest drew special controversy this year after Education Minister Yoav Kisch threatened to revoke funding for Tel Aviv and Hebrew universities over the events.

Palestinian student activists speak on a raised platform beside a banner that reads in English and Arabic “The Nakba is ongoing.” On one side of the platform is a map of historic Palestine, on which activists mark in red, green and black paint — the colors of the Palestinian flag — communities that were destroyed or heavily damaged in the 1948 war. MK Aida Touma-Suliman marks the communities of Nazareth, where she was born, and Acre.

Activists, many clad in Palestinian keffiyehs, also carry signs bearing the names of razed Palestinian villages. In lieu of Palestinian flags, which police often confiscate, protesters carry cardboard cut-outs of watermelons, which are identified with the Palestinian cause due to the fruit’s red, black, green and white colors.

Referring to the ban on Palestinian flags, some signs read, in Arabic, “They’ve forbidden the flag” and “They’re even afraid of watermelons.” Other signs demand: “No to the genocide in Gaza.”

Palestinian protesters sing patriotic songs, including the poems “Ounadikum wa’Ashad ‘Ayadkum” (I call you and shake your hands) by Mahmoud Darwish and “Mawtini” (my homeland) by Ibrahim Tuqan.

A map of historic Palestine is marked with dots in the colors of the Palestinian flag representing communities destroyed in Israel’s War of Independence, at a Nakba memorial ceremony outside Tel Aviv University, May 14, 2025. (Noam Lehmann/The Times of Israel)

One Palestinian student activist describes in Hebrew how her grandfather’s family was expelled to Lebanon from the Galilee village of Al-Bassa, in what is now the Israeli town of Shlomi. In Lebanon, she says, several members of his family, including his sister, were slaughtered in the 1982 Sabra and Shatila massacre, when Israel turned a blind eye to the atrocities perpetrated in the refugee camp by its anti-Palestinian Christian Lebanese Phalangist allies.

“The Nakba is ongoing, it’s not just a story of my grandmother and grandfather,” she says. “I’m a refugee in my own land… the fact that I’m afraid to raise my flag is a Nakba.”

“Just as I thought these are things of the past, they’re back, and we’re watching them in real time,” she says, referring to Gaza. From behind a police barricade, a right-wing Arab-Israeli yells “Liar!”

Addressing the counter-protesters, the ceremony’s emcee says they will soon find themselves in prison for murder.

“Then you’ll wish you hadn’t massacred, then you’ll wish you hadn’t murdered,” she says.

Across the street, right-wing student group Im Tirzu holds a rally featuring angry speeches against the university for letting the Nakba memorial take place. A large banner reads “Nakba Harta,” or “the Nakba is a load of crap.”

Deputy Minister Almog Cohen attempts to drown out a Nakba memorial protest at Tel Aviv University with a solo rendition of Israel's national anthem. pic.twitter.com/8nrB8hVHo5

— Noam Lehmann (@noamlehmann) May 14, 2025

Deputy Minister Almog Cohen, of the far-right Otzma Yehudit party, approaches the memorial with a megaphone, attempting to drown out proceedings with a solo rendition of “Hatikva,” Israel’s national anthem.

A spokesperson for Tel Aviv University — which itself stands on the ruins of the Palestinian village of Sheikh Munis — says the school “is the largest and most diverse university in Israel — liberal and pluralistic — and it takes pride in that.”

“In these difficult times… the university calls on all students across the spectrum to demonstrate tolerance and refrain from any calls that incite violence.”

The spokesperson notes that the Nakba commemoration is an annual event that takes place outside the university gates, “and is therefore under the responsibility and with the approval of the police.”

Netanyahu appoints Foreign Ministry director general as temporary Civil Service commissioner in wake of High Court ruling

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrives at the Tel Aviv District Court, before the start of his testimony in his corruption trial, May 14, 2025 (Yariv Katz/POOL)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appoints Foreign Ministry Director General Eden Bar Tal as temporary Civil Service commissioner for one month starting today, after the High Court of Justice ruled on Monday that the government’s method for appointing a new head of the Civil Service was invalid.

And in a statement to the press, the Prime Minister’s Office lambastes the High Court decision to intervene over how the Civil Service commissioner is appointed, accusing the court of “acting like the legislature” and “interpreting the law in total opposition” to its wording and the intention of the Knesset.

The Law for the Civil Service states that it is not obligatory to issue a public tender for the role of Civil Service commissioner, but the High Court ruled two to one that the appointments process must be competitive.

The government passed a cabinet resolution in 2024 allowing the prime minister to choose a single candidate for the post, to be vetted by committee.

The PMO says that as a result of the decision, the government will back legislation submitted to the Knesset yesterday to stipulate that the position need not be filled through a competitive process.

Trump heads to Qatar after visit to Saudi Arabia

US President Donald Trump has boarded Air Force One and is heading to Qatar for the second stop of his Middle East trip, after his visit to Saudi Arabia.

HAPPENING NOW: President Trump is departing Saudi Arabia. We'll have coverage from 6-9AM ET as he begins the second leg of his trip in Qatar. Tune in to @FoxNews! pic.twitter.com/Jr2HfU6zr1

— FOX & Friends (@foxandfriends) May 14, 2025

Easyjet postpones resumption of Tel Aviv flights until July 1

An easyJet flight takes off from Ben Gurion International Airport, April 11, 2018. (Moshe Shai/FLASH90)

British low-cost airline Easyjet says it is postponing a resumption of its flight services to and from Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport until July 1.

Earlier this year, Easyjet announced plans to restart its route to Tel Aviv on June 1, having suspended services to Israel following Iran’s first direct attack on Israel in April last year.

“Any customers booked in June are being informed of their options which includes a refund or a transfer to an alternative flight,” the UK carrier says in an emailed statement. “We continue to closely monitor the security situation in Israel.”

Lapid: Letting Saudi Arabia develop civil nuclear capabilities will ‘lead to Mideast nuclear race’

Opposition leader and Yesh Atid chair Yair Lapid leads a faction meeting at the Knesset in Jerusalem, on May 5, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Allowing Saudi Arabia to develop civil nuclear capabilities would be a significant mistake and “lead to a Middle East nuclear race,” Opposition Leader Yair Lapid warns.

Speaking with Army Radio, the former prime minister says that he had “sat down with the Emiratis and they told me, ‘If the Saudis accept this – we will do it too.'”

US President Donald Trump signed a host of economic and bilateral cooperation agreements in Saudi Arabia yesterday increasing cooperation between their governments’ militaries, justice departments, and cultural institutions. The agreement includes a mammoth arms deal worth nearly $142 billion.

At the same time, Saudi Arabia and the United States are discussing a deal to cooperate on the kingdom’s ambitions to develop a civil nuclear industry. According to sources, the United States is no longer demanding Saudi Arabia normalize ties with Israel as a condition for progress on civil nuclear cooperation talks.

Even without the normalization requirement for civil nuclear talks to progress, and despite unpacking the issue from a wider defense treaty, a deal is not yet in close reach, however.

Agencies contributes to this report.

Trump says he ‘wants to make deal with Iran,’ but it ‘must stop’ terror support, proxy wars and can’t have nukes

US President Donald Trump tells Gulf leaders that he urgently wants “to make a deal” with Iran to wind down its nuclear program but that Tehran must end its support of proxy groups throughout the region as part of any potential agreement.

Iran “must stop sponsoring terror, halt its bloody proxy wars, and permanently and verifiably cease pursuit of nuclear weapons,” Trump says in remarks at a meeting of leaders from the Gulf Cooperation Council hosted by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in the Saudi capital.

“They cannot have a nuclear weapon,” he says.

The US and Iran have engaged in four rounds of talks since early last month focused on Iran’s nuclear program. Trump has repeatedly said he believes brokering a deal is possible, but that the window is closing.

Netanyahu asked Trump not to lift Syria sanctions, Israeli official says

US President Donald Trump, right, meets with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on April 7, 2025. (SAUL LOEB / AFP)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu requested that US President Donald Trump not lift US sanctions on Syria, during Netanyahu’s visit to Washington last month, says an Israeli official.

The official says the request was made out of concern that a cross-border attack similar to Hamas’s October 7, 2023, assault, could come from Syria.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the request with the media.

The Prime Minister’s Office has not immediately responded to a request for comment on the report.

Trump on Tuesday said he would ease sanctions on Syria and move to restore ties with its new leader.

Fresh Khan Younis strikes in apparent attempt by IDF to prevent Gazans nearing tunnel where Sinwar was targeted

A screenshot of an undated video released by the Israel Defense Forces on December 17, 2023, shows Hamas commander Muhammad Sinwar, right, riding in a car traveling through a tunnel under the Gaza Strip. (Screenshot: Israel Defense Forces)

Palestinian media reports new Israeli airstrikes near the European Hospital in southern Gaza’s Khan Younis this morning, where yesterday the IDF targeted Hamas leader Muhammad Sinwar.

The strikes appear to be an attempt by the IDF to prevent anyone from approaching a tunnel beneath the medical center where Sinwar was targeted. His fate remains unclear.

One strike this morning near the hospital hit a bulldozer, according to Palestinian media.

Trump: There is a ‘new chance’ for Lebanon free of Hezbollah

US President Donald Trump says that after the appointment of a new president and prime minister of Lebanon earlier this year, “there is a new chance” for the country, “free of Hezbollah’s grip.”

After the Lebanon-based Iran-backed Hezbollah terror group was severely degraded during its conflict against Israel last year, the country appointed President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minster Nawaf Salam.

Since their appointment, the new government has taken steps to retake control over the country from Hezbollah, which had acted as quasi-sovereign entity over the last several decades.

After the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, Hezbollah began unprovoked missile and drone attacks on Israel, with near-daily attacks for over a year. Israel responded with extensive airstrikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, targeting top terror leaders and killing long-time Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah last fall.

The IDF also conducted a limited ground invasion of southern Lebanon, which aimed to push the terror group away from Israel’s northern border.

Last November, Israel reached a ceasefire with Hezbollah, withdrawing troops from most of southern Lebanon and only holding five strategic posts near the border.

Oman confident US and Iran can make a nuclear deal

US President Donald Trump speaks with Oman's Deputy Prime Minister for International Affairs Al Sayyid Asaad Tariq Taimur Al Said, center, and Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani as they arrive to attend a group photo with Gulf Cooperation Council leaders during the GCC Summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, May 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

The deputy prime minister of Oman reportedly says Muscat is confident that the US and Iran can reach an agreement on Tehran’s nuclear program.

Oman’s Deputy Prime Minister for International Affairs Al Sayyid Asaad Tariq Taimur Al Said expresses confidence that a nuclear deal with Iran can be reached, the New York Times reports. Muscat is mediating talks between the US and Iran.

King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa of Bahrain praises the discussions between Iran and US, saying they will “bolster stability and improve prosperity across the region.”

The comments are made at the opening of the US-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit in Riyadh, attended by US President Donald Trump.

In Japan, Sa’ar slams Iranian axis, says Israel will expand Abraham Accords when war ends

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar says Israel won’t accept threats from Iran and its regional proxies, and declares Israel will expand the Abraham Accords normalization agreements when the war in Gaza ends, during a press conference in Tokyo this morning.

“Since October 7th, Israel has been attacked by the evil axis of Iran, Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis and the Shia militias in Iraq. We were attacked on seven fronts and we didn’t initiate on any of these fronts… we retaliated to the attacks,” says the foreign minister to a group of some 80 reporters, in a transcript of the meeting shared by his office.

“Israel aspires to expand the Abraham Accords and circle of peace and normalization in the Middle East. And we will do it when this war will be over! But we cannot accept the ongoing threats to our security,” Sa’ar says.

“Iran must be prevented from obtaining nuclear weapons. The international community must take firm action to make sure of this,” Sa’ar continues, saying, “We thank Japan for its consistent and responsible approach in the International Atomic Energy Agency.”

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar speaks during a press conference at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo on May 14, 2025. (Kazuhiro NOGI / AFP)

After being informed that sirens were going off in Israel in response to a Houthi missile attack from Yemen, Sa’ar says, “During this very press conference… millions of Israelis are now running to shelters… I believe this is war crimes. Because it is targeting civilians.”

Sa’ar also thanks US President Donald Trump “for helping secure the release of our soldier and dual Israeli-American citizen Edan Alexander,” who was freed from Hamas captivity on Monday.

Yesterday, Sa’ar told Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya that Israel’s delegation to Doha this week will try “to reach a framework for the release of hostages, as we had sought from the beginning — based on the Witkoff framework.”

“It is impossible to continue living alongside Hamas’s terror state… They continue to hold our hostages in order to dictate conditions that would allow them to continue their war against Israel,” he said.

He also called on Japan to reject any unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state, saying, “Unilateral steps against Israel will require an Israeli response. This would corner Israel. I call on Japan to reject such ideas, which would only push peace further away.”

Iran, “like Hamas, they hold a fanatical religious ideology… After what they’ve already done… without nuclear weapons, one can only imagine what they would do if, God forbid, they got them. This must not be allowed,” he told Iwaya.

Iran to meet with European nations for nuclear talks; FM Araghchi says Trump has ‘deceptive’ view of Tehran

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi attends a news conference following his meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Moscow, Russia, Friday, April 18, 2025. (Tatyana Makeyeva/Pool Photo via AP)

Iran will hold talks in Istanbul on Friday with European parties to the now-moribund 2015 nuclear deal, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says, after an earlier meeting planned for May 2 was postponed.

Iran’s foreign minister reiterates the fourth round of Iran-US talks held on May 11 was “difficult” as they focused on the controversial issue of enrichment, adding he hopes the other side will come with “more realistic positions” after gaining a better understanding of Iran’s fundamental positions.

A fifth round of talks is to be announced by Oman’s foreign ministry, which has acted as mediator since the start of the talks on April 12.

Araghchi reacts to US President Donald Trump’s comment made yesterday in Riyadh, where Trump called Iran “the most destructive force” in the Middle East and drew a stark contrast with what he called Saudi Arabia’s “constructive vision.”

“Unfortunately, this is a deceptive view. It is the US that has prevented Iran’s progress through sanctions,” Araghchi says.

Bin Salman: Saudi Arabia working with US to deescalate Mideast, see ‘sustainable solution to Palestinian issue’

US President Donald Trump walks alongside Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman ahead of a group picture with Gulf leaders during the Gulf Cooperation Council summit in in Riyadh on May 14, 2025. (Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP)

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman says that that Arab Gulf states are seeking to work with the US to deescalate tensions in the Middle East.

The crown prince makes the comments in opening remarks at the US-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit in Riyadh, attended by US President Donald Trump.

Bin Salman says the kingdom is hoping for an end to the war in Gaza, with a “sustainable solution to the Palestinian issue,” with the New York Times reporting he said he wants it to be reached in line with the Arab Peace Initiative, a 2002 initiative that offered Israel normalized ties with the entire Arab world once it reaches a two-state solution to its conflict with the Palestinians.

Trump says process of US normalizing ties with new Syrian regime began in meeting with al-Sharaa

US President Donald Trump says after his meeting with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa in Riyadh that the process of normalizing relations with the new Syrian government began with their meeting, adding that he is lifting US sanctions on Syria to “give them a fresh start.”

After the White House said that Trump urged al-Sharaa to join the Abraham Accords and normalize ties with Israel, the US president says that “in the future we will continue to add more countries” to the accords.

Trump asked al-Sharaa to ‘deport Palestinian terrorists,’ says White House spokesperson

US President Donald Trump urged Syria’s President Ahmed al-Sharaa to “deport Palestinian terrorists” during their meeting in Saudi Arabia, says a White House spokesperson.

The spokesperson adds that Trump also asked al-Sharaa to “to help the United States to prevent the resurgence of ISIS.”

Police plan to limit visitors to Mount Meron for Lag B’Omer holiday

FILE: Haredi Jews celebrate Lag B'Omer at Mount Meron on May 8, 2023. (David Cohen/ Flash90)

Police plan to limit attendance on Mount Meron to 63,000 people at any given moment for the coming Lag B’Omer holiday, says a spokesman for the event to The Times of Israel.

Over 100,000 mostly Hasidic revelers are expected to ascend to the mountain tomb of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, a 2nd-century mystic and rabbi, over a 16-hour period from Thursday to Friday.

Though the festivities usually last for 30 hours straight, this year’s celebration will be cut short, as participants will travel home early Friday evening in preparation for Shabbat, the spokesman says.

Attendees will enter and exit the compound in specific time slots, and are barred from arriving by car. The only way to get to the mountain tomb will be by bus, train or shuttle from a nearby parking lot, with advance registration.

The Transportation Ministry also announced major transit shakeups to accommodate the masses of pilgrims expected to throng the Galilee pilgrimage site.

Israel Railways plans to divert trains from the center and south for the use of those going to and from the pilgrimage site from Thursday to Friday. The special arrangements cost the ministry some NIS 12.5 million, according to Channel 12.

In effect, this means that a major train route between Tel Aviv and Beersheba will not operate from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursday, and the northern Karmiel station will be closed from Thursday to Friday to all passengers except returnees from Mount Meron.

Advocacy group Israel Hofsheet railed against these changes, calling them “discrimination against the general public.”

The group notes that Thursday is considered a peak day for railway activity as many soldiers return home for the weekend.

“The right of Meron attendees to access public transportation cannot come at the expense of IDF soldiers, residents of the north and south, or any other citizen. Regular soldiers have the right to return home for the weekend,” said the organization’s director Uri Keidar in a statement earlier this week.

Trump urged Syria’s al-Sharaa to join Abraham Accords with Israel, White House says

A handout picture provided by the Saudi Royal Palace shows Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (R) watching as US President Donald Trump (C) shakes hands with Syria's interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa in Riyadh on May 14, 2025 (Bandar AL-JALOUD / Saudi Royal Palace / AFP)

US  President Donald Trump urged Syria’s President Ahmed al-Sharaa to sign onto the Abraham Accords with Israel, a White House spokesperson says.

The comments come a day after a surprise US announcement it would lift all sanctions on Damascus’s Islamist-led government.

The White House statement comes shortly after Trump met with al-Sharaa in Syria at a meeting in Riyadh also attended by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and, via video link, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Trump said yesterday that it was his “dream” for Saudi Arabia to join the Abraham Accords, but acknowledged that Riyadh would do so in its own time.

Air Canada delays resumption of flights to Israel until September 8

Air Canada pushed off resumption of its flight services to Israel until September 8, citing the “ongoing geopolitical uncertainty in the region.”

Canada’s flag carrier previously planned to restart its route to and from Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport on June 8.

“Air Canada has a longstanding commitment to the Canada-Israel market and looks forward to restoring service between the two countries,” the airline says.

Protesters chanting ‘genocide’ attempt break-in at Sa’ar press conference in Tokyo

An anti-Israel protest in front of the Japan National Press Club, where Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar is scheduled to hold a press conference in Tokyo on May 14, 2025. (Kazuhiro NOGI / AFP)

While Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar held a press conference with about 80 journalists in Japan this morning, a group of pro-Palestinian protesters surrounded the building where the meeting was held, with some trying to break in, according to Sa’ar’s office.

In a photo shared by Sa’ar’s spokesperson, one protester is seen holding a sign with the foreign minister’s face on it, labeled “War criminal” in both English and Japanese.

Security personnel are also shown removing a protester who was shouting “genocide” while inside the building, in footage shared by Sa’ar’s office.

The disruption comes amid heightened tensions over Israel’s military campaign against the Hamas terror group in Gaza. Israel sent a delegation to Doha this week for final attempts at reaching a hostage-ceasefire deal with the terror group before moving forward with an expanded ground invasion in the enclave.

Erdogan and bin Salman said to join Trump’s meeting with Syria’s al-Sharaa

A handout picture provided by the Saudi Royal Palace shows US President Donald Trump (L), Secretary of State Marco Rubio (2nd L), Syria's interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa (R), Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (C) and Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan (2nd R) meeting in Riyadh on May 14, 2025 (Bandar AL-JALOUD / Saudi Royal Palace / AFP)

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan joined the meeting between US President Donald Trump and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa via video call, which was also attended by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, according to the Turkish Anadolu news agency.

Erdogan said during the meeting that Trump’s decision to lift sanctions on Syria was of historic importance, Anadolu reports.

Trump made the surprise announcement yesterday that the US would lift all sanctions on the Islamist-led government in Syria, which had been a key goal for Turkey.

صور استقبال الرئيس أحمد الشرع من قبل ولي العهد السعودي ولقاء ترمب مع الرئيس الشرع pic.twitter.com/qTuqgl7dgk

— Omar Alhariri (@omar_alharir) May 14, 2025

Trump meeting with Syria’s al-Sharaa in Saudi Arabia

Left to right: US President Donald Trump takes questions outside the West Wing of White House in Washington, DC, on May 8, 2025. (Jim WATSON / AFP); Syria's interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa listens during a joint press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron after a meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris, May 7, 2025. (Stephanie Lecocq/Pool via AP)

US President Donald Trump is meeting with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa ahead of the GCC summit in Riyadh, a day after announcing that the US was lifting sanctions on Syria, a White House official says.

It is the first such encounter between the two nations’ leaders in 25 years.

IDF issues evacuation warning for three Houthi ports in Yemen ahead of possible strikes

The IDF repeats its “urgent” evacuation warning for three Houthi-controlled ports in Yemen, ahead of possible airstrikes.

On Sunday, the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesman Col. Avichay Adraee warned Yemenis to keep away from the Ras Isa, Hodeida, and Salif ports on the western coast until further notice.

Since the initial warning, the Houthis have launched several ballistic missiles at Israel, but no IDF strikes have been carried out.

Adraee now repeats the warning, a short while after a Houthi missile fired at Israel was intercepted.

“Due to the Houthi terror regime’s use of ports for its terror activities, we urge all those present at these ports to evacuate and stay away from them for your own safety until further notice,” he says.

#عاجل تحذير مهم ومتكرر لكل المتواجدين في الموانئ البحرية التي يسيطر عليها النظام الحوثي الإرهابي
⭕️ميناء رأس عيسى
⭕️ميناء الحديدة
⭕️ميناء الصليف

????نحثكم على اخلاء هذه الموانئ حتى إشعار آخر????

نظرًا لقيام النظام الحوثي الإرهابي باستخدام الموانئ البحرية لصالح أنشطته الإرهابية نحث… pic.twitter.com/sqdQhvVdWt

— افيخاي ادرعي (@AvichayAdraee) May 14, 2025

Declassified docs show European nations shared intel to help Israel track down Palestinian terrorists in 1970s

According to a report in The Guardian, newly declassified documents show that a secret coalition of countries, most notably the UK, US, France, Switzerland, Italy and West Germany, joined forces to assist Israel with intelligence to track down Palestinian terrorists in Europe in the 1970s.

According to the report, the information gleaned by the secret intelligence-sharing coalition, codenamed Kilowatt, “was offered [to Israel] without any oversight by parliaments or elected politicians” from any of the involved nations, for fear of breaking laws or causing public or political scandal.

The report says the intelligence sharing began a year before the 1972 attack on Israeli athletes at the Munich Olympics, and involved intelligence services from 18 countries.

The mechanism “circulated raw intelligence with details of safe houses and vehicles, the movements of key individuals seen as dangerous, news on tactics used by Palestinian armed groups, and analysis,” the report says.

The report adds that after the 1972 Munich attack, which killed 11 Israeli athletes, the intelligence-sharing mechanism was used to provide Israel with targets for its assassination campaign against the Palestinian terror operatives who ordered and carried out the attack, especially those who resided in European cities in the 1970s.

According to the report, the secret intelligence-sharing system was discovered by Dr. Aviva Guttmann, a historian at Aberystwyth University. while studying encrypted cables found in Swiss archives.

At least 29 killed in Israeli strikes in Gaza, says Hamas-run civil defense agency

Gaza’s Hamas-run civil defense agency says at least 29 people were killed and dozens wounded in Israeli strikes on Gaza overnight and this morning.

“At least 25 martyrs were killed and dozens wounded” in Jabalia, in northern Gaza, while another four people were killed in a strike in the southern city of Khan Younis, civil defense spokesman Mahmud Bassal tells AFP.

Casualty figures from the Hamas-run agency cannot be independently verified and do not differentiate between civilians and combatants.

Israeli strike reported in southern Lebanon; no comment from IDF

Lebanese media reports an Israeli drone strike against a vehicle near Qaaqaait al-Jisr in southern Lebanon.

There is no immediate comment from the IDF.

إستهداف سيارة في قعقعية الجسر pic.twitter.com/cYWYIpffWw

— هنا لبنان (@thisislebnews) May 14, 2025

Houthi missile successfully intercepted by air defenses, IDF says

People take cover on the side of a highway as a siren sounds a warning following a missile that was launched from Yemen, in Tel Aviv, Israel, May 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

A ballistic missile launched at Israel by the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen was successfully intercepted by air defenses a short while ago, the military says.

There are no immediate reports of injuries or damage in the attack.

Sirens had sounded in Jerusalem and numerous surrounding towns. Preceding the sirens by some four minutes, an early warning was issued to residents, alerting civilians of the long-range missile attack via a push notification on their phones.

Since March 18, when the IDF resumed its offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis in Yemen have launched 33 ballistic missiles and at least 10 drones at Israel. Several of the missiles have fallen short.

Sirens sound in Jerusalem area, several West Bank settlements after Houthis fire missile

Sirens are sounding in Jerusalem and the surrounding area, several settlements in the West Bank, and communities near the Dead Sea following the launch of a ballistic missile from Yemen.

The IDF says it is working to shoot down the projectile.

IDF says missile launched from Yemen, sirens expected in central Israel, Jerusalem

A ballistic missile has been launched from Yemen at Israel, the military says.

Sirens are expected to sound in central Israel and the Jerusalem area in the coming minutes. An early warning is issued for a wide area.

The IDF says it is working to shoot down the projectile.

Katz on IDF strike targeting Sinwar: ‘We’ll keep pursuing Hamas’s leaders, won’t let them use hospitals as terror HQs’

The aftermath of an IDF strike on what it says was a Hamas underground command center below the European Hospital in southern Gaza's Khan Younis, May 13, 2025. (Screenshot: X; used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

Defense Minister Israel Katz comments on yesterday’s strike in Gaza that targeted Mohammad Sinwar, Hamas’s leader in the enclave, vowing to “keep pursuing Hamas and its leaders.”

“We will not allow the Hamas terrorist organization to use hospitals and humanitarian facilities in Gaza as shelters and terrorist headquarters,” Katz says, referencing the fact that the IDF massive airstrike which targeted Sinwar was on an underground command center below the European Hospital in Khan Younis.

The Hamas-run health ministry reported 16 dead and over 70 wounded in the strike, though there was no confirmation that Sinwar was among the casualties. Those numbers cannot be independently verified and do not differentiate between civilians and combatants.

“We will pursue Hamas and its leaders and strike it with force everywhere,” adds Katz.

“We will continue to act with force until all the goals of the war are achieved: the release of all the hostages and the surrender of Hamas,” he says.

IDF says troops destroyed bomb-making factory in Tulkarem

The military says it destroyed a bomb-making factory uncovered by troops in the northern West Bank city of Tulkarem.

Soldiers found some 200 bombs and 150 kilograms of explosive materials to make further bombs, which were detonated along with the building, according to the Israel Defense Forces.

pic.twitter.com/UL0FSr9ZCO

— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) May 14, 2025

The IDF also says that troops arrested 18 suspects across the West Bank yesterday and confiscated a gun and other weaponry. Among those arrested was a Palestinian from Beita suspected of involvement in a recent roadside bomb attack that wounded two reserve soldiers, one of them seriously.

Geological survey says quake felt in Israel was 2-2.3 in magnitude

The Geological Survey of Israel reports that the survey felt across parts of Israel registered at 2-2.3 in magnitude on the richter scale.

Pro-Netanyahu commentator attacks freed hostage Edan Alexander after his mother didn’t thank PM

Yinon Magal attends a hearing on the arrest of an aide to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the so-called Qatargate investigation, at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem, May 9, 2025. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

A leading right-wing political commentator lashes out at freed hostage soldier Edan Alexander and his family, after his parents did not mention Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu when thanking US President Donald Trump and the administration’s envoys for their role in securing her son’s release.

Yinon Magal publishes a post on X accusing Edan’s mother Yael Alexander of  a “repulsive performance of ungratefulness and lack of culture” for not thanking Netanyahu, adding “only in the toxic and disturbed atmosphere that the left and media are creating here can this happen.”

While hosting Channel 14’s “The Patriots,” he also attacks Alexander himself, claiming “the circumstances in which he was kidnapped are problematic.”

Magal’s remarks are denounced by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum as an “ugly attack” on Alexander and his family.

“Just as Yael Alexander said this evening: We choose unity, love of mankind and commitment to the values we were raised on. Time has run out, the world is watching and history will remember,” the group says in a statement.

6.3 magnitude earthquake in Crete felt across parts of Israel

Residents of numerous areas around Israel, including Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, report feeling an earthquake shortly after a 6.3 magnitude quake struck the island of Crete in Greece.

Azerbaijan, fronted by a Jewish singer, fails to advance to Eurovision final

Mamagama, representing Azerbaijan with the song "Run With U," performs at the Eurovision Song Contest 2025, at the St. Jakobshalle arena in Basel on May 13, 2025. (Sebastien Bozon/AFP)

The first big night of Eurovision 2025 in Basel, Switzerland, wraps up smoothly, with 10 acts from the first semifinal advancing to Saturday’s grand final.

On Thursday evening, another 16 acts — including Israel’s Yuval Raphael — will take the stage aiming for the last 10 spots in the grand final.

A handful of Palestinian flags could be seen in the audience tonight after Swiss organizers relaxed regulations from past years around permissible flags, although their presence was not strongly felt.

Azerbaijan, whose lead singer, Asaf Mishiyev, is a member of the country’s Mountain Jewish community,  did not advance in tonight’s semifinal. Also ending their Eurovision run are Belgium, Cyprus, Croatia and Slovenia. The countries who did advance are Iceland, Poland, Estonia, Sweden, Ukraine, Portugal, Norway, San Marino, Albania and the Netherlands.

Thursday’s winning acts will join tonight’s qualifiers plus the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Spain and Switzerland on Saturday to vie for the top prize.

Israel said to arrest Shin Bet source in Gaza as Hamas double agent who falsely reassured handlers on eve of Oct. 7

A source in Gaza for the Shin Bet was arrested during the ongoing war and brought to Israel for questioning, during which he admitted to being a double agent, Channel 12 news reports.

The source reportedly told Israeli interrogators that on the night of October 6-7, 2023, he received a phone call from his Shin Bet handler and falsely assured them: “There is no offensive deployment by Hamas. I know. I’m up to date.”

According to the Ynet news site, which does not report that he admitted to being a double agent, the Shin Bet asset is a mid-ranking Hamas official.

He reportedly had been expected to provide crucial intelligence at a time when many Hamas operatives were already aware of the planned assault.

The agent’s statements were interpreted as a sign that an attack was less likely, contributing to the broader Israeli intelligence failure by reinforcing the false belief that Hamas was not preparing for an attack.

Channel 12 reports that few such calls were made to field agents that night, underscoring what Israeli officials now describe as a significant intelligence blind spot, and the affair is being treated as highly consequential in ongoing internal reviews.